, 1887-06-02
WOMEN AND SOCIAL SCIENCE.
An Incident which illustrates q Trait
In the Fair Sex.

An Incident which illustrates a Trait
In the Fair Sex.
Especial Correspondence
New YORK, May 90.
Women are more cruel than men In many
respects. Was It a Frenchman who said,
"The cruelest creature is "a woman, but the
meanest Is manf" We must admit that
Frenchrnen have u way Of saving things thai
have in them truth and force crystullized
But as to the special order of cruelty which
have in mind. IL is the desire of women /,
keep interiors of their own sex from rising u
the social or financial scale. With many OF
them, "once a servant always servant. >
That is, they refuse to permit woman who
has served them in any inferior capacity to
ascend, even by her own skill and industry.
When occasionally one of their housemuids
makes break and establishes herself IN bust
ness a grade higher, her mistress regards it as
a piece Of presumption and makes it subject
of humor In the family. The better the maid
succeeds in her new line of employment, the
more does the mistress feel herself and society
injured; the better the opportunity for ridi-
cule. Not SO with men. They understand
that the hope Of the human race lies in the
desire to climb-the divine discomfort which
leads on to growth and advancement II the
humblest aud obscurest porter in their en-
ploy shows a desire and ability to advance
himself to something higher, they will give
him all the help they can, take pleasure in
seeing him better himself, and finally when
he has reached an equality with themselves
they will give him the same respect and con.
sderaton they show others, and they will al.
ways be proud of him.
But women, for the most part, are entirely
without breadth In their ideas of social line
drawing. They are excusable. For centuries
they have lived within lines and been taught
to venerate said lines and all other lines which
a false idea of life set up and kept standing.
Small wonder Is 1t that they do not see the
lever that moves the world; that they mis-.
take the glorious face of progress for the i'm
pertinent countenance Of presumption.
1 was reminded Of this weakness in my sex
the other day. Dining with four or five
friends, all ladies who had more than ordi.
nary intellectual claims, the talk took an in
dustrial turn. Each one had an opinion OH
the subject Of the enormous army of unem-
ployed in New York. Being comfortably
adjusted in the mosaic of life themselves, they
viewed the struggles and suffcrings Of those
who were not, with that calm philosophy
which characterizes the comfortable.
One lady told how one of her chamber.
maids, the most faithful and efficient one she
had, came to her one day and said: "Mrs. r.,
/ have decided to leave you. am not at all
dissatisfied with either you or the work. but
believe can do better Mt sewing, going out
by the day at first, and afterward opening
place Of my own think it is every woman's
right and even duty to do the best she can
for herself"
A most sensible girl, surely; but her for
mer employer could not get over the idea
that this was piece Of extravagant imperti.
nence on the part Of the maid. She did not
say so, but she went OH to tell how said maid
was now located at first class boarding
house, taking her coffee in her room and
putting on no end of airs" At this point
two of the company said: Perfectly ridi
culous.' l said: "Highly commendablel !
That girl has In her the spirit which made
our ancestors revolt against the yoke oil
British rule; the spirit to which we are in
debted for all growth and excellence in the
industrial arts She Is doing her part towards
pushing the car Of progress"
They all looked rather alarmed at my
mannish view of the situation, but did not at
tempt 10 defend their position as obstruction
lists. There were no moro CALCULATIONS Of con.
tempt for the energetic seamstress In my
presence. The good lady who told the story
agreed with me that the girl had chosen the
better part; but the old contempt for the in
ferior, the belief inculcated through the years
that lines of caste were drawn by heaven and
not to be overleaped without punishment,
tinctured her in spite Of herself.
do not blame her. She had never before
had occasion to think on that subject outside
of the established and Interchangeable order Of
things, and probably never will have again.
@. G..